Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Zombies Just Wanna Have Fun

'Zombies' lurching along a downtown street tend to cause a stir. When the living dead carry duffel bags and backpacks with what look like wires sticking out, the cops step in.

This horror show unfolded Saturday evening in Minneapolis, where officers arrested six ghoulish revelers in thick makeup who police said were staggering along like zombies near Sixth Street and Hennepin Avenue.

'They were arrested for behavior that was suspicious and disturbing,' said Lt. Gregory Reinhardt, a police spokesman.

All six were booked into the Hennepin County jail under a post-9/11 Minnesota statute making it a felony to 'simulate weapons of mass destruction.'

Dressing up like characters from the movie 'Night of the Living Dead' might have been OK, but toting bags with what police said appeared to be protruding wires apparently crossed a line.

A friend of the group said the arrests were overkill and that the suspicious devices were homemade stereos.

'This was just kids trying to have some fun,' said Helen Hicks, who said she has attended similar 'zombie' gatherings in the past."